Our background in accountancy means it is our aim is always to help our clients maximise their money. This ethos does not change when it comes to estates so we will always do everything we can to keep administration costs as low as possible. We can offer as much or as little help as you require.

Other institutions who carry out probate work charge a variable rate but in addition often charge a percentage of the estate, which could be as high as 4%  - even for simple estates. We do not do this and prefer our fees to be based on the services we provide not on the wealth of the deceased. 

Fixed or variable fees

You can choose to go for one of our fixed fee packages or go for an estimate based on our hourly rates and our assessment of how long we think it will take to complete the assignment. As noted above, we aim to be as flexible as possible.

We are committed to transparent pricing and thus, for those who wish to go down the fixed fee route, we have developed the following fixed packages to choose from:

Package 1

This includes the following services:

An initial meeting with Personal Representatives (PRs) to understand the estate and to obtain details of deceased, executors, beneficiaries and close relatives of the deceased.

Reviewing all relevant paperwork (including will and death certificate etc)

Calculating gross and net value of estate.

Completion of IHT forms and calculation of IHT liability from details provided by PRs.

Completion of PA1 form for the probate application from details provided by  the PR’s.

Associated correspondence, meetings and phone calls to complete the above.

Package 2

This includes everything in Package 1 but in addition includes:

Completion of IHT forms and calculation of IHT liability as above but we will collate the various details by enquiry of banks, investment advisors etc rather than obtaining these from the PRs. 

Finalising the deceased’s income tax.

Finalising the estate income tax.

Package 3

This includes all items in Packages 1 and 2 plus the following:

Operating a client account for the estate and gathering in assets and paying liabilities and beneficiaries.

Arranging payment of legacies.

Distribution of the residuary estate.

Preparation of estate accounts and agreeing these with the PRs

The price of Package 1 is fixed and the fees are as follows:

For estates with a gross value in excess of £500,000, the fixed fee for Package 1 is £1,500 inclusive of any VAT. 

Where an estate has a gross value of less than £500,000 the price depends on whether there is a surviving spouse or not:

The cost of Package 1 - surviving spouse £900 inclusive of any VAT

The cost of Package 2 - no surviving spouse £700 inclusive of any VAT

For Packages 2 and 3 the cost is dependent very much on specific circumstances. However, we have a fee calculator which can produce a fixed fee for the services outlined in the relevant Package. If you contact us with the following we can provide you with a fixed price.

The approximate gross value of the estate.  

The approximate number of bank accounts held by the deceased.  

Whether the deceased investments are held by an Investment Advisor.    

If the deceased held investments personally, the approximate  

number of individual holdings.         

Whether the deceased a beneficiary of a trust

.         

Whether the will includes a trust.

We will provide a fixed quote, based on the above, within 24 hours.